Simple
Domains blocked by DPML are not live on the Internet and therefore don't require the involvement of your IT team
By now you’ve heard of the release of hundreds of new top level domains. These new gtlds are a great new way for brands to get creative, intuitive and meaningful domain names to show what their website is all about.
But now that these tlds are becoming available to the public, cyber squatters can sabotage this opportunity. That’s why Donuts Registry and ZNetLive have made available to you a new service that can help you protect your brand. The service is called Domains Protected Marks List or DPML.
DPML enables your brand to block its trademark related terms across all of the Donuts Registry TLDs for a fraction of what it would cost to defensively register those terms. This allows you to protect your mark and valuable keywords that contain the mark across all Donuts Registry TLDs while retaining new ability to unplug and register them in the future.
A onetime purchase protects any trademark related term for an initial period of 5 years. DPML is powerful, flexible, simple and affordable. The time to protect your brand is now.
Domains blocked by DPML are not live on the Internet and therefore don't require the involvement of your IT team
Allows brand owners to protect more than their trademarks. DPML also protects keywords that contain the mark.
The program allows trademark holders to protect marks in all of Donuts new TLDs with the ability to also register specific domains later.
Costs brand owners significantly less than if they choose to defensively register terms.
To buy DPML for protecting his brand and trademark from cyber squatters, the trademark holder must first register the trademark with the Trademark Clearinghouse (TMCH).
The Trademark Clearinghouse (TMCH) is the most important brand protection mechanism built specifically for the launch of new TLDs by ICANN to ensure that the brand owners have peace of mind that their trademark is protected. TMCH acts as the authoritative online source for registered marks, monitoring any violations of domain names registered with a trademarked term.
Brand owners must submit an exact match of their trademark(s), or a term that contains their exact match trademark(s) for review at TMCH.
Once that term is approved by TMCH, you will be given a unique code called the Signed Marked Data (SMD) file that needs to be provided to Digital-Claps.
After the SMD file is uploaded by Digital-Claps, the trademark term(s) are blocked from registration in all Donuts TLDs for an initial period of 5 to 10 years. A DPML subscription then can be renewed in increments of 1 to 10 years. A domain blocked by DPML is not functional, meaning it may not be used for a website URL, e-mail address or other type of domain-related functionality.
Previously Registered Domains: A term will not be blocked in any TLD where that term is already registered as a domain. If a domain is initially excluded from DPML because it is already registered, a rights holder may still subscribe to DPML (and block the term in all other Donuts TLDs). If the previously registered domain expires or is deleted, DPML protection will then automatically apply to that TLD.
Premium Domains: Most domains are priced as standard. However there are a limited number of higher-priced premium names. DPML blocks terms for standard priced names only. Know more about what a premium domain is.
Other Sunrise Rights: Another trademark holder with Sunrise rights for a term may register that term as a domain name, even when a DPML subscription exists for it. This is known as a “DPML Override”.
Yes, only you can purchase the domains blocked via your DPML. This process is called ‘Overriding’.
DPML Override: A DPML block on a specific domain may be overridden, or unblocked, at any time. To unblock a new TLD, the trademark holder must have a valid unique Signed Marked Data (SMD) code from the TMCH. Only exact matches of a mark can be unblocked. For example, if Apple wanted to unblock a domain, they could only unblock a domain with the term with “apple”.
Sunrise Phase: If you just want to register a new TLD, try placing an order during the Sunrise phase, this is the initial launch phase of a domain. Sunrise — the first and only mandatory phase during the launch of a new TLD — is primarily intended for trademark holders to register domains that fall under their mark earlier than the general public. An SMD code from the TMCH is required before you can register a domain name during Sunrise.
DPML stands for Domains Protected Marks List. Brand owners can add their trademark-related terms into the DPML and have them blocked from registration at the second level in all Donuts Registry operated top-level domains. The second level domain is the address directly left of the TLD – for example, in the domain name yahoo.com, yahoo is the second level domain (SLD).
DPML protects mark holders against cybersquatting at a fraction of what it would cost to defensively register their trademark terms.
Powerful: Allows brand owners to protect more than their trademarks.DPML also protects keywords that contain the mark.
Flexible: The program allows trademark holders to protect terms in all Donuts Registry TLDs offered by ZNetLive while retaining the ability to register specific domains during or after Sunrise.
Simple : A one-time purchase protects a term for five years. Domains blocked by DPML are not live on the Internet and therefore don’t require the involvement of your IT team.
Affordable : Costs brand owners significantly less than if they choose to defensively register terms.
No one will be able to register domains that contain a term for which you have a trademark. And the process is entirely automated.
Brand owners must submit an exact match of their mark(s) to DPML, or a term that contains their exact match mark(s). Once a term is accepted to DPML, that term is blocked from registration in all Donuts registry TLDs for an initial period of 5-to-10 years. A DPML subscription then can be renewed in increments of 1-to-10 years. A domain blocked by DPML is not functional, meaning it may not be used for a website URL, e-mail address or other type of domain-related functionality.
In order to buy DPML, you must be an owner of a trademark. The trademark holder must have the trademarked string registered with the Trademark Clearinghouse (TMCH). Once the TMCH validates the mark, it will issue a unique code called the Signed Marked Data (SMD) file that should be used to submit a DPML block at Digital-Claps.
The Trademark Clearinghouse (TMCH) is the most important brand protection mechanism built specifically for the launch of new TLDs. TMCH acts as the authoritative online source for registered marks, monitoring any violations of domain names registered with a trademarked term. A private person or a company can submit trademarks for review. As new TLDs go live, the TMCH will simplify your registration process and monitor for any violations afterwards a new TLD goes live.
Once a trademark owner’s application with TMCH is approved, he is given a unique code called the Signed Marked Data (SMD) file that will be used when registering either DPML or a domain in a Sunrise phase with Digital-Claps. Any fees associated with the TMCH are not covered by DPML. To learn more about submitting your mark, see the Trademark-Clearinghouse website. Here is the cost associated with registering your trademark with the TMCH.
A DPML Block is simply a String that the mark holder wishes to protect. The String may be an exact match of the mark or may contain the mark within it (the mark may be at the beginning, end or anywhere in the middle of the applied-for label(s), so long as it is contiguous).
For example, let’s say ABC Co. owns the trademark “xyz”. Even if ABC Co. does not have a trademark for “xyzzz,” ABC Co. may still purchase a DPML block to cover the label ‘xyzzz’ because that String fully contains the trademarked term “xyz.”
The DPML term a trademark holder wishes to purchase must consist comply with the requirements below:
The term does not exceed 63 characters;
The term should exclusively of the letters A-Z (case insensitive), the numbers 0-9, and hyphens;
The term may not begin or end with a hyphen;
The term must be based on a Domain Name Label contained in an SMD File that is made up of at least three characters;
One and two character DPML terms are not permitted. Three character DPML terms are permitted but only as an exact match of the trademark
The label may only have two consecutive hyphens (–) in the 3rd and 4th positions, if any, when preceded by “xn” and followed by a label that corresponds with an IDN containing characters referred to in (g) above;
For DPML Blocks in IDNs, the label must be in the character scripts (languages) Donuts registry and Digital-Claps offers and supports as specified on the Donuts website and Digital-Claps website.
| Trademark | Term selected for DPML | Is this term valid for DPML? | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yahoo | Yahoo | Yes | DPML term is an exact match of the trademark. |
| Yahoo | yahoooo | Yes | DPML term contains an exact match of the trademark. |
| Apple | myapple | Yes | DPML term contains an exact match of the trademark. |
| IBM | ibmservices | No | Trademark is fewer than four characters in length and therefore cannot be used for a "contains" DPML. |
| Verizon | ver1zon | No | DPML term is a misspelling that does not contain an exact match of the trademark. This term does not qualify for DPML. |
| AMEX | myamexcard | Yes | DPML string contains an exact match of the trademark term. |
| UnitedParcelService | Unitedparcelsservice | No | The DPML term includes an additional "s" and therefore does not contain an exact match of the trademark. |
Yes. The trademark should remain current in the TMCH throughout the life of the DPML block.
DPML will protect will the TLDs that Donuts registry operates. Donuts has applied for 307 TLDs and estimates it will operate approximately 200.
Have more questions regarding DPML service and how it can help you protect your brand?
